Family Feud
by SuperKev34
Summary: A falling out takes place between two of America's wealthiest families - the Waynes and the Queens. In an attempt to get away from the distress, both families take a vacation on the same deserted island. But after a freak storm gives people on both sides superpowers, the conflict only intensifies as both groups face the reality of being stranded without hope of rescue. AU!
1. Meet the Waynes

**(A/N): What's going on Justice League fanfiction fans?**

**The idea for this story is kind of a silly one, but I wondered what it could look like if the Justice League were actually one big family like the Fantastic Four or the Incredibles, but obviously larger in scale. Well, there were a few things that kind of made that unfeasible so I decided to split them into two families.**

**And since the most important part of the story is the plot, I figured I'd make it a rival family story. Some creative liberties had to be taken as far as canon and some (VERY minor) changes in characterization to make this work. Thus, it's an AU story.**

**Now, at the beginning of this story, just about everyone is superpowerless. But fear not! You'll see your favorite characters gain their famous abilities eventually. I like seeing these guys kick butt with their powers as much as the next guy, so rest assured that they will get said powers to kick said butt later on.**

**Last piece before I shut up and get out of the way, I know it's kind of annoying when people beg for reviews, but I'd really appreciate hearing what you all think of this. Granted, it will take some time for this thing to develop (this first chapter will only introduce you to one of the families), but once the ball gets rolling, I'm sure there'll be plenty to give feedback on.**

**Okay, I'm done. Enjoy the story!**

* * *

For the Wayne family, being rich was pretty much everything it was cracked up to be.

Celebrity connections, expensive trips abroad, and access to any and every luxury a human being could buy, were just a few of the pleasures they enjoyed on a daily basis. It was for this reason that the billionaire prince of Gotham named Bruce Wayne thought nothing of taking a few days' leave of absence to tour the Mediterranean.

His wife, Diana, was native to this region. The two met while Bruce was on a business trip in Greece. Picking up beautiful, young women was no foreign experience to the strapping young businessman – even in foreign countries. However, the connection he made with this particular woman was deeper than his typical superficial affairs usually bore. She wasn't rich or well connected… her widowed mother often sent her to fight for a spot at the market to sell the little produce that the family farm managed to produce. But her level of compassion and courtesy to everyone (including the rudest of fellow market vendors) despite this situation caught Bruce's attention.

She was certainly no pushover though. And definitely not easy to simply sweep off of her feet as the billionaire discovered after approaching her a few times during the first day. But given a few weeks' time (spread over the course of year traveling back and forth to Greek branch of WayneTech), Bruce was able to turn her opinion of him while tripping head over heels the whole way.

Fast forward to the present day, quiet moments spent together like the one they currently shared on the waterfront of Florence, were hard to come by. Time to kindle their relationship was one luxury money couldn't often buy.

Yet, there they were – watching the sun dip behind the horizon of the city while sharing a bottle of wine. It was hard to think of anything that could make the moment any sweeter until…

"MOOOOOOOOM!"

The sound of the shout was piercing like that of a tire screeching in traffic. Both members of Gotham's first couple cringed: halfway due to the sudden shock and the other half due to the realization that their tender moment was over for the night.

"Yes Damian?" Diana answered exasperatedly.

"They're bullying me again," the distressed sounding voice of her son replied angrily. Diana sighed and put down her glass. Bruce gave her a look asking if he should take care of it but she waved him off signaling that she would handle it.

Moving away from the reclined chair, she reentered the hotel suite and made her way to the living space. Sounds of a struggle could be clearly heard as she moved down the hallway. She entered the room just in time to see her daughter Helena successful wrangle the television remote from Damian's hand as her other son, Tim, aggressively pinned Damian's arms and legs to the couch. Hands on hips, Diana gave her most irritated glare she could muster as all three faces quickly turned towards her.

"His show is over! It's our turn to pick," Tim protested before Diana had the chance to say anything.

"No! This is the last commercial break! We haven't seen the credits yet," Damian growled defiantly as he squirmed under his adopted brother's weight.

"Damian, look at the clock! It's 6:57. How much of your show could be left in 3 minutes?" Helena said, gesturing with the remote to the clock on the nearby table.

"First of all, you have five seconds to get off of your brother, Tim. Secondly, I thought I said to you all that you had one hour left of television before it had turn off," Diana said authoritatively.

"Yeah, an hour," Tim said as he rolled off of the smaller boy.

"That was 58 minutes ago," Diana said, spying at the clock that had changed to 6:58, "You're all just about finished."

"We thought you meant one hour _each_," Helena explained. "Me and Tim watched a show, and Damian watched a show. That's only 30 minutes apiece."

"No. I said one hour. That's collectively. It sounds like you all got to see something that you wanted anyway," Diana said. Her glare still hadn't softened.

"Well I didn't even _want_ to watch Tim's show that much. It just sounded better than Damian's stupid, cheesy cartoon animal crap," Helena complained as she dramatically pointed each brother as she mentioned them.

"I do not want to hear that kind of language out of you. And still, that does not change my decision. It is 7 now. The TV goes off," Diana said with finality. She stood and waited until Helena slowly raised the remote and clicked the power button. All three kids looked pouty but that drew no sympathy from Diana. "Good. Now, you _can_ go down to the pool or the game room **if** Jason goes with you. But I want everyone back in the room by 9, understand?"

Murmurs that kind of sounded like yeses were uttered which was good enough for Diana. She turned on her heels and headed back down the hallway to the part of the suite where the boys shared a room. On her way, she thought she got a whiff of something that alarmed her greatly. Picking up the pace, she reached the door of the boys' bedroom and opened it to find her horror confirmed. Jason, their second adopted son, was lying on the bed smoking a cigarette.

At first, her rage and shock prevented her from saying anything other than staring hard at the 17-year-old boy. In response, he lowered the Italian equivalent of Maxim magazine and took it out of his mouth.

"Hey, at least I opened the window first," he sneered as he proceeded to flick the butt out of it. Diana began to tremble at how upset she was.

"**Smoking**? I know that you do a lot of things that your father and I wish you wouldn't but **this** is absolutely unacceptable."

"I'm not going to share with the kiddies or anything. And I'm not addicted… I only do it when I'm bored. And you and dad have done an excellent job of driving nails into my coffin of boredom on this little trip," Jason said as he avoided his mother's gaze.

Bruce and Diana did what many American celebrity couples did and adopted a few underprivileged children. Their first, Dick, was an orphan whose parents were killed in a freak circus accident. Now grown and on his own, he moved out of the house and typically didn't indulge in the wealthy lifestyle anymore. Their second, Jason, was a vagabond that tried to steal Bruce's car one night when the billionaire was out on call. While driving him to the police station, Bruce learned of the boy's situation and began to feel pity rather than rage. Learning of the orphanage from which the boy came, both he and Diana went to bargain for the adoption. And then, of course there was Tim was came a few years afterwards.

But Jason was the most worrisome. Even after moving in with the Waynes, he did not take well to their lifestyle at all. He became more and more rebellious – to the point of open defiance at times. Fortunately, Bruce was a stubborn man and would not cast the boy back into the streets… regardless of how far Jason pushed the limits. But Diana was feeling more and more distress over the boy's increasing belligerence.

"I can understand that you don't prefer to live the way that we do. However, you DO need to abide by house rules until you're 18."

"One month. Can't wait," Jason chimed. He picked up his magazine again, signaling that he wasn't interested in continuing the conversation any further. Diana stood in silence for about 30 seconds before speaking again.

"We will discuss this with your father later. But I never want to see what I just saw again," Diana said. Turning again to move down the hall, she reentered the living room where now Helena had Damian in a headlock on the ground while Tim cheered her on.

"**ENOUGH**! What is it going to take to get you children to behave yourselves?" Diana said in an exasperated tone. Her children were dangerously close to driving her out of her mind tonight.

"He's fine mom. He started it anyway," Helena said, pushing Damian away.

"Well, if you're going to the pool, get your stuff now. I'm going to take you instead," Diana announced. The two boys jumped to their feet and raced down the hallway. Helena pulled her suitcase from under beside the couch since the pull-out bed inside of the couch was where she slept (thus making the living room of the suite her bedroom).

Diana marched back down the hall and out to the deck where the sun had disappeared and Bruce was checking his smartphone. Sitting down to put her shoes on, she recounted everything that just happened and told him about taking the kids to the pool. Bruce promised to talk with Jason once the kids were clear of the suite. Diana knew that Bruce cared, but his body language betrayed him in that regard. He continued to scroll through his email alerts that seemed to go off at 5 minute intervals. Sighing deeply, Diana went to round up the crew and head out.

* * *

That night after teeth were brushed, showers were taken, and children were in bed, Diana retreated to her own bedroom where Bruce was finishing the packing.

"So, what exotic destination are we off to next, my ravishing world-explorer?" she said jokingly.

"Everyone's favorite – Gotham City," Bruce said without a smile. This caused Diana's own smile to fade. Gotham was no one's favorite. Even Ace, their dog, seemed to get depressed upon returning home after a trip elsewhere.

"Well, I guess we had to return to reality at some point…" Diana sighed.

"The company is having a bit of an issue with a rival," Bruce explained, "We've been partnering with Queen Industries on a project for the government's space program. This project is fairly far outside of either company's domain, but is putting us both in a good place with key people higher up. The problem is a classic one – you know what they say about oil and water?"

"They have a tough time mixing, I know. So which one is Wayne Enterprises? Oil or water?" Diana joked.

"I wish it were a laughing matter, Diana. However, these issues have the potential to cost each of us a lot of money. The board is trying to decide whether this partnership is beneficial enough to move forward with."

"Well, I guess you have your work all cut out for you then. I should probably visit my job at some point too… I wonder if I'm even still employed," Diana mused.

"The wife of the man with the highest net worth in the tri-state area? I'm pretty sure they'll keep you around for a little while, at least," Bruce said as he went back to packing. Diana moved to the bathroom sink and began removing her makeup.

"So, how many times will I get to see you during this little turf war?" she asked in a different tone. Bruce slowed his movements a bit.

"If I had my way, any and all meetings in the company would be adjourned at 5 PM every day. But the board doesn't seem to see things my way," he admitted.

"That's funny, I don't see any of the board's names plastered to company's logo," Diana said picking up her toothbrush.

"You and I both know that it doesn't work that way, Diana. I'm not any happier about this than you are. But there's nothing that I can do at this point in time," he said. He turned his attention to packing once more. "I need a vacation."

Diana chuckled and paused brushing for a second, "You can say that again."

"I think I'm going to arrange for another getaway soon. Something more private," Bruce thought out loud.

"You've got a little less than a month before the kids start school again," Diana said. She spit and rinsed then continued, "You should probably think fast."

"I'll be sure to," Bruce said as he zipped up the last suitcase. "Don't worry, I left some sleepwear out for you before I packed everything," he announced. He crawled up onto the bed and into the covers. Diana turned off the light and tossed her shirt to the side of the room before crawling onto bed next to him.

"That's thoughtful, but I don't think I'll need it." After a long kiss on the lips, the couple took an opportunity to share one last bit of intimacy before the trek back to the dirty, smog-filled city they called home.

* * *

**Well, there you have the Wayne family! Yes, it's essentially Bat-family exclusive for now, but the Queen family will have some more familiar faces that you all know and love.**

**No word on an update schedule yet. I want to keep things fairly regular, but I can't make promises.**

**Though I will put every effort forth to get the next update out within the week. Until next time! **


	2. Meet the Queens

**(A/N): Aaaand we're back!**

**Sorry about the delay getting this chapter ready. I had a mid-life crisis of sorts (despite not being anywhere close to middle aged…) and decided to rework some elements of how I wanted to approach this chapter. I planned on having it up yesterday, but ended up writing and rewriting it about three times. No joke.**

**Moving forward, I cannot guarantee a certain update schedule for a variety of reasons, but I don't want to make this a ghost story that only reappears once in a blue moon. I know how irritating it is to wait for months on ends for stories to update *cough*no names but *cough* but I'm terrible at time management and will probably end up taking a hiatus here and there :P (no harm intended, I'm just poking fun)**

**Anyway, to avoid putting my foot any further into my mouth, I'll just let you guys read the chapter and save the bulk of the story explanation stuff for the end. Enjoy!**

* * *

_You know, being rich isn't really all that it's cracked up to be_, Oliver Queen thought to himself has he turned the key in his convertible's ignition. The motor's humming halted and the dulcet tones of Billy Joel stopped flowing from the radio's speakers. The businessman flipped the switch for the roof to activate and waited for it to close completely. He looked to his right and eyed the overstuffed briefcase sitting in the main passenger seat. It simply reminded him of how horribly grueling the day that he just suffered through had been for him. As a result, he decided to leave it where it laid for now.

Swinging the driver door open, he cautiously stepped out into the driveway of his $2.5 million home. Nervously peeking into the next door neighbor's yard, he was relieved to see that the drunken red-haired man was not lounging on his patio this evening as he usually did. _Oh thank God. One snide comment out of Guy Gardner would probably send me into a seizure right now,_ Ollie mused as he walked along the path to the front door.

Upon entering his home, he was greeted by blasting rap music that was so loud it was vibrating the bones in his jaw. To no surprise, the DJ was his strong-willed goddaughter who was simultaneously browsing her Twitter feeds.

"Artemis…" called Ollie as he cringed from the sensory overload. It was a weak attempt – he couldn't even audibly discern what he just said over the pounding beats that pulsed from the living room's exceptional sound system. After making his way over to the control console that operated the system, the music paused before he even got the chance to touch the dial. He turned his head to see the teenager glaring at him from the couch, the remote in her left hand.

"What do you need, Oliver?" she asked impatiently.

"Well, for starters, a 'hello' and a hug wouldn't be out of line," he said with a half frown. The blonde girl rolled her eyes and laid her laptop off to the side to walk over to where Ollie stood. After a half enthusiastic one-armed side hug, she was on her way back to her original spot. "And while I'm overjoyed that you stopped calling me 'Mr. Queen', I'd like to point out that you don't have to call me by full name. Ollie works just as well," he commented.

"Between you and me, I think calling people by cutesy nicknames is stupid. Unless, of course, their actual names are equally stupid. Then it becomes the lesser of two evils," she said as she retyped her password on her laptop's lock screen.

"Ouch? I'm ok with whatever… just as long as you feel at home," Ollie said looking around the less-than-tidy living room. He often felt kind of awkward talking to the teen – she was really in a tough situation. Her biological parents were currently serving life sentences for a heist that involved multiple murders and one use of an explosive. It was plastered all over the news for weeks and drew a lot of uproar from the media. The weirdest part for Ollie was the fact that he knew the man (Artemis's father) really well. More than really well actually – he was best man at Ollie's wedding and made him the godfather of his daughter.

After some legal stuff was out of the way, Ollie and his wife Dinah chose to take Artemis in for a pseudo-adoption. She was already fairly familiar with the couple's two biological children and had made acquaintance with much of the extended family. It was almost seven months now, and Artemis still seemed to be adjusting to her new life.

"So uh… have you seen Dinah around?" he asked finally. The sound system had booted up again around him though with a much lower volume.

"No," came the short reply.

"She's out back in her workshop again. She's been there since I came in this afternoon," came a voice from the main stairwell. Ollie's son, Connor Hawke Queen, entered the room behind his father. He offered much heartier hug than his godsister, before taking a seat in the opposite facing couch.

"Should have figured… how were classes today?" asked Ollie.

"Fine. Today was a lighter load than usual because my last professor cancelled. Too bad I didn't check my email before heading out this morning… I found out from the classic note on the door routine," Connor said sheepishly. "Luckily, I was able to use the extra time for some studying."

"Atta boy!" Ollie exclaimed as took off and shouldered his business jacket. He was completely fine with the fact that Connor didn't want to study business. He started out that way – thinking he'd hop in with the family business after school. But halfway through, he decided it wasn't for him and switched majors to being a Physician's Assistant. He was using the summer term to catch up on some required classes. Ollie supported the decision wholeheartedly though his own father would have been quite the opposite. But there were many reasons why Ollie wished to distance himself from the ways of his deceased father.

Heading outside through the back door, he made his way over to the standalone shed that his wife Dinah used as a workshop for her motorcycling hobby. She had a little side job as a repair mechanic for the community's motorcycle enthusiasts for competitive prices. But from what Ollie could tell from her lively conversations over the topic, she would gladly do it for free. Ducking under the half closed garage-style door, he gazed upon the soot and oil covered woman that he deeply loved.

"How goes it, prettybird?" he said smoothly as he leaned against one of the worktables. Dinah kept working – her hair tied up to avoid getting in way of what she was doing.

"Fine. Rough day?" she asked without even looking at him.

"Like you wouldn't believe. How could you tell?" he asked, his gaze trained on her cerulean eyes.

"Your voice doesn't have that irritating jovial tone like it usually does," she mocked as a hint of a smile formed at the corner of her mouth.

"Yeah, well my brothers were their usual thick skulled selves at our little private meeting this afternoon. Carter especially refuses to grow a spine and tell these Wayne Enterprises mooks that we're not going to bend over backwards to keep them comfortable. We've done everything that we promised them, yet they still want to pull out of this project. It's a freakin' government space station for crying out loud! It would be the only legitimate interesting product they'd ever produced to be honest," Ollie ranted as he began to move around the shop.

"Mmmhmm," Dinah said, still not turning her gaze from the bike she was tinkering with.

"Granted, the consequences wouldn't exactly topple the Wayne empire should they choose to get out. It's us that would take the bigger hit. We've sacrificed so much and Carter is willing to just let that slide if it means staying on good terms with the ****s. Pardon my French," Ollie said.

"It's not too late to start up a birthday party clown business. You could make balloon arrows and shoot them from your fancy, high-tech Queen bows," Dinah joked.

"Har har," Ollie said sarcastically, "my hobby isn't as in demand as yours seems to be as far as business ventures go. But I'm glad it works out for you."

"Ah well. How's Barry settling in?" she asked, choosing to change the course of the conversation.

"He's still mopey about having to move to Star City from the sticks. I mean, seriously… who would rather live in Nowheretown, Missouri when you've got the best of 'Cali-forn-eye-ay' calling your name? But I heard he managed to get a good thing going with a news reporter girl down there. It sounded like they decided to call it off after he packed to move up here. _That_ part is kind of a shame. The kid could use someone in his life to keep him anchored down. Thanks for doing such a good job with that for me, by the way," Ollie said as he made his way closer to where Dinah worked.

"Always a pleasure babe, but don't get too close. I'm going to start making sparks soon and I'd hate to see you light **another** of your classy business suits on fire," she said.

"That was a freak of nature occurance… one out of a billion," Ollie insisted, "I was worried that you'd never let me back in here again after that." Dinah laughed and finally turned to look him. They stood in silence looking into each other's eyes. Ollie shifted his weight to maybe start moving in for a little lip-lock but was skirted by Dinah's arm that reached for the welding mask.

"So Mr. world-class chef, what's for dinner?" she asked.

"I ehh… I don't know yet, I'll figure something out soon. I thought I'd make a batch of special chili first though. Carter said Shayera is sick with the flu. I figure maybe a little something to clear her sinuses could do some good," Ollie shrugged.

"Oh God, Ollie. Please don't kill the poor woman," Dinah said giving him a look of horror. Ollie couldn't tell if it was genuine or mocking. Most of the family cleared the room whenever he whipped up a batch of his special chili and never could figure out why. His mother made the recipe all the time when he and his brothers were young. He only made a _few_ "improvements".

"Well, she's in no position to cook for herself and Carter sure isn't going to step in there. It'll be for a good cause," he insisted.

"Well, can't argue with that I guess," Dinah said as she put on the mask. "Just make sure what make for actual human consumption will serve seven. John and Mari are coming over for dinner."

_Great_. Ollie thought to himself. He didn't dislike John per se, but he never connected with the man the way that Dinah assumed that he did. She was decent friends with Mari so he figured that was why they got the invite. Also the fact that John did the architectural work for pretty much all of the Queen family's homes. Between his brothers and John Stewart, Ollie seemed to be forced to be around quite a few people that cramped his style.

* * *

Making his way back into the house as the sun began its decent behind the horizon, he hit a button on the wall's control panel to flip the TV out of its hidden panel. Turning to the Food Network, he started getting out his chili ingredients while Iron Chef America started up. Hearing the pitter-patter of tiny feet told Ollie who was on their way in to see what was on the menu for tonight.

"Hey princess," he called to the little eight year old girl that appeared in the archway between the kitchen and the family room.

"Hi daddy, what're you making?" the girl asked.

"The most awesome chili on the western hemisphere! Want to help?" he asked with a grin.

"Umm...," she hesitated.

"Don't do it, it's a trap!" called a voice from the living room.

"Ah, go back to listening to your Drake and your Macklemoo or whatever it is you kids listen to these days," Ollie called back.

"Ew, I don't listen to Drake," the angry teenage voice retorted.

"I do!" the eight year old announced, "And One Direction!" she added cheerfully.

"Riiight, excellent. So, how about that chili, butterfly?" Ollie asked.

"Okay," Cissie said at last. She rolled up her sleeves and joined her father at the center island of the kitchen as they organized the ingredients and went right to work.

* * *

**Fun fact, there is a recipe for Green Arrow's special chili on the DC Wiki. It also features some pretty hilarious reactions from the other Justice League members. I'd highly recommend checking it out… it doesn't really sound all that bad though.**

**As far as the families go, I guess I'll explain the tree now that both have been introduced. On the Wayne side of things, there is Bruce who is married to Diana. They adopted three sons: Dick, Jason, and Tim in that order. Dick is grown (early twenties), Jason is 17, and Tim is early teens… around 13. Then Helena and Damian are natural born and they are 12 and 7 respectively. Damian may be a tad out of character in this story since I chose to make him so young, but I'll be sure to maintain as much of his awesome Damianess that you all know and love as much as possible.**

**It wasn't referenced in part one, but Diana is cousins with Big Barda who is married to Scott Free (Miracle Man from the episode "The Ties that Bind" of JLU) in this universe. She is good friends with Artemis (the Themysciran Amazon, not the teenage archer introduced in this chapter) who still lives in Greece in this universe. And on Bruce's side, he has one sibling – Helena Bertinelli who is the Huntress seen on JLU. I was somewhat hesitant to give Bruce any siblings at all, but I felt that this could be an exception since their origins are similar (with the murder of their parents inspiring their heroics) and the fact that they sometimes worked together in the comics and had an interesting dynamic. Yes, Bruce and Helena's parents were killed in an alley in this universe. More on that later.**

**On the Queen side of things, Carter (Hawkman), Arthur (Aquaman), Orm (Ocean Master), and Barry (pre-Wally Flash), and Ollie's brothers. I'm bracing myself for outrage for that decision, but please understand that this is an alternate universe whose specific purpose was to build a family unit out of the members of the Justice League. I obviously had to kind of bulldoze the continuity there since half of them aren't even human in the regular DC lore. But hopefully you'll forgive when you see their family dynamic later in the story.**

**Ollie is obviously married to Dinah (Black Canary). I made Connor Hawke their biological son and Cissie King-Jones their biological daughter in this universe. 'Hawke' is his middle name in this story, in case that confused you. And I couldn't resist including Cissie since she's awesome and kind of got the short end in the Young Justice cartoon. Speaking of which, I also couldn't ignore Artemis who I kind of hated at the beginning of the show, but grew to love towards the end. I wanted to include her in Ollie's primary family unit, but didn't want to go the random adoption route that I kind of overkilled with the Wayne side of things. So I crafted this little backstory for her that was inspired by YJ's origin – her father is indeed Sportsmaster and her mother is the villainous Huntress in this universe. Lawrence Crock is a former friend of Ollie in this universe.**

**As far as the extended family, Carter is married to Shayera (Hawkgirl) as mentioned and Barry was dating Iris before calling it quits and moving to Star City. That doesn't mean that their relationship is over however… and that most certainly doesn't mean that a certain red-headed speedster won't find his way into this in the future. I wanted to assure the Wally fans that I wasn't pulling a New 52 on him – he will be in the story so don't worry! However, I have a certain liking for Barry. I kind of relate to him a little better than Wally and I like the idea of Flash being kind of geeky and awkward while leaving the goofy humor to Hal as Green Lantern. But I digress.**

**You'll meet the extended families of both in the coming chapters. I just figured that I'd map things out for anyone who's confused about who is related to who. Also, you'll discover some other connections that the characters have to iconic DCU characters. I know a lot of people were concerned about the absence of beloved portions of the Bat family and the Wonder family. As I explained to a couple of those people, I kind of struggled with fitting some characters in organically. However, I will do my best to find a spot for the biggies before the plot takes off in the vacation-turned-disaster direction. That's the REALLY fun part where I look forward to playing with these character dynamics. But – I don't want to spoil anything and I probably will if I continue on.**

**That said, I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter and will return for part 3!**


	3. Surprise Visitor

**(A/N): Hiya guys!**

**I don't think there'll be any real announcements at the beginnings of chapters anymore since there's really no need for them other than me hearing myself think (or reading… myself… bah, forget it). So, from here on out, I'll just jump right into the chapters and leave any babbling for the end after everything is written. General responses to reviews, clarifications on things that may be confusing, blah blah etc.**

**Hope you enjoy as always!**

* * *

As Bruce entered through the front door of Wayne Manor, he could immediately tell that something was amiss. The usually yelling and pounding of running feet was missing from the halls. There were no obnoxious sound effects from cartoons or video games echoing off of the walls of the TV room. Even Ace's piercing "somebody is at the door" barking was absent. Eyes narrowed in suspicion, Bruce slowly closed the door behind him, then placed his briefcase on the ground next to the entryway.

"Hello? Diana? Alfred?" he called as he removed his business suit jacket. No response answered him. Dumbfounded, the billionaire began searching the multitude of rooms comprising the first floor of the mansion. Peeking into each one, he often found evidence of being previously occupied, but each one proved to be vacant after a few seconds of scrutinizing. Not a soul was found, even after five solid minutes of the search.

Finally, in the final room before Bruce was planning to head to the second floor, he spotted the faithful family butler making his dusting rounds in the study. The old man had served the Waynes for two generations – beginning his service during Bruce's father's late teenage years through to the present. Bruce had never known a more loyal man in his life. This butler, Alfred, had transcended his role as a servant and become one of his best friends. And after the tragedy that stained his youth, Alfred became the closest thing Bruce had for a father. Approaching the room, he cleared his throat as he addressed the elderly man.

"Good evening Alfred."

"Ah, welcome home Master Bruce. I trust everything went well at the office today?"

"Truthfully, no. We're in the midst of making a number of difficult decisions whose consequences will have impacts beyond the four walls of our company. But hopefully we'll find progress tomorrow morning when we meet with representatives of the other party who are acting as our partners in the endeavor – but progress seems doubtful," Bruce explained. Alfred continued his work as he patiently listened to the businessman's words. Rubbing a bit of polish into the desk, he nodded in acknowledgement of his master's words.

"That's unfortunate news, sir. However, you'll likely be happy to know that we've received a surprise visit this afternoon from a certain someone who seemed eager to see you. She's with the children in the exercise room as we speak," Alfred announced.

Bruce's expression changed considerably with the revelation. Looking back towards the downward leading staircase that went to the mansion's gym, he asked, "Surprise visitor? Who-" he stopped mid question when he noticed the butler's conservative grin. The old man was rarely very demonstrative with his emotions. But when they did break through, though they were slight, they communicated what a hundred words could. Bruce understood instantly who had arrived at Wayne Manor.

* * *

Descending down the steps toward the exercise rooms, Bruce could hear the sounds of a commotion going on inside one of them. He reached the door and opened it in time to see his adopted son Tim kicking at a tall, raven-haired woman who looked to be in her early thirties. Suddenly catching the boy's foot, she gently pushed and twisted it which caused the young teenager to topple onto the ground. Snickers erupted from the audience that consisted of his two younger siblings. Embarrassed, he ignored the woman's offer to help him up and sheepishly greeted his father who stood still at the entrance of the room.

"Hey dad…" he shakily said, his face reddening as he realized that his father saw the whole thing. The woman turned around and gave a sly smile when seeing visitor's face.

"Hey big brother. Long time no see?"

"Helena. This is quite a surprise," Bruce said taking a few steps further into the room.

"Yeah, well, I thought about calling first, but then I realized that this is technically still my house anyway," she said in between gulps of water, "hope I didn't catch you _too_ off guard."

Bruce struggled to hold back a smile at the sight of his sister. Aside from Diana, she was the woman that he had the deepest connection to out of every one that he knew. The two created a close bond in the aftermath of their parent's death when both were young. It was a particularly dark and rainy night when the Waynes went to a local performance at a theatre that was secretly owned by one of Gotham City's most influential crime bosses. During the show, Bruce became uncomfortable when actors that portrayed bat-like demons leaped onto the stage and began swarming the main protagonist. Pleading with his father to leave early, Thomas Wayne eventually consented and led the family out through a back entrance.

In the alley that led away from the building, the Waynes were met by a rogue member of the crime family that controlled the theatre who instantly demanded valuables from Thomas and his wife Martha. As the two children watched in horror, their father handed more and more over to the criminal as the man grew increasingly aggressive. Eventually, the gun in his hand turned toward their mother as the mugger made a particularly violent advance on her. This caused Thomas to leap into action in defense of his wife only to cause the instigator to shoot him in head. Fearing that his screaming wife, would press charges, he shot and killed her as well.

Turning to the two children that cowered behind their fallen parents, the man either did not see a threat or didn't have the heart to slaughter them as he had the adults. Quickly gathering what he cared to, he took off down the alley, leaving Bruce cradling a sobbing Helena and lifelong scars for both.

After that night, Bruce angrily determined that he would not allow himself or his sister to be victimized by the corrupt ever again. Seeking out several self-defense teachers, he absorbed as many martial arts techniques as he had access to. In turn, he taught them to his sister who caught on and mastered them even faster than he had. Upon reaching adulthood, Bruce decided to take on the responsibilities of the family company – Wayne Enterprises and lead the operation of it. Helena, on the other hand, was sick of the city and the rising crime rate that plagued the streets to an even greater extent than it did when the two were young. She moved away to another city, but at times came back to visit Bruce, Alfred, and the family that had now taken shape in her former home. She welcomed all of them with open arms with the majority of them responding mutually.

"They're a lot livelier than the last time I was here," Helena observed, referring to the kids. "I figured I'd show them a little bit of what I've picked up since that last visit. I'm surprised _you_ don't do this with them more often. Considering you guys are living next to the city with the second highest crime rate in the country and all…"

"We manage," Bruce said looking out of the adjacent window.

"Aunt Helena says she can beat you in a fight!" Bruce's daughter who shared his sister's name taunted from where she sat nearby.

"Is that so?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and turning his attention to the three kids who were intently watching the adults greet each other.

"*Ahem* 'Lena, I thought we agreed to keep that little secret between us..?" the older Helena said with a half smirk.

"I don't believe you," Damian said coldly, "I want to see you prove it." The young boy didn't even smile as he uttered the words. Arms crossed, he sat ready to fiercely defend his father's honor.

"Well, let's not disappoint the boy… What do you say Bruce? For old times' sake?" Helena said wiping the sweat from her forehead with a nearby towel.

Bruce looked from her to the kids and back to her. Narrowing his eyes, he growled "You're on. But since you're being so forward, don't expect me to go easy."

"Wouldn't have it any other way. But I suggest finding something more appropriate to wear," Helena said as she noticed his dress shirt and pants outfit.

* * *

A short change of clothes later, the two took their place in middle of the room with kids gathered around them. After circling each other in fighting stance for a bit, Helena threw a punch followed by a sweep with her legs. Bruce blocked the fist and hopped over the sweeping kick only to pull his opponent in by her arm that initially threw the punch. Using the momentum created by the pull, she put pressure on Bruce's hand that gripped her left hand tightly and vaulted over him, bringing him down to the ground as she gracefully landed on her feet behind him. The kids gasped in awe at the acrobatic move and watched in anticipation as their father hit the ground.

He wasted no time recovering as he pulled away from the woman and regained his footing. Turning to face her, he did a quick spin then threw his forearm at her in a backhanded strike. She expertly blocked it and brought her knee up which made contact with Bruce's ribcage. Bouncing back from the hit, he put all of his focus into blocking the flurry of punches and kicks that came his way until he found the opportunity to throw his shoulder into Helena which sent her tumbling backwards. Their audience wasn't even cheering anymore. The three kids looked on in shocked silence as their father and aunt traded blows that displayed a great deal of prowess none of them knew their relatives possessed.

The sparring match went on for another 15 minutes with neither side showing signs of willingness to quit. Despite Bruce's threat to not hold back, he had clearly developed a lot more bruises over the course of the battle than his sister. He didn't seem willing to inflict real injury, but definitely tested the woman's fighting skills. The most spectacular showing of said skill came as Bruce stepped in to finish the fight as Helena was laid out on her back. Seemingly submitted, she was showing no signs of retaliation as her opponent stooped down to pin her. Once in range, she swiftly brought both ankles up and wrapped them around Bruce's thick neck. With a quick jerking motion, she brought her brother down on his head and swiftly transitioned to sitting on his chest. Seemingly tired of the match, Bruce simply stayed down until Helena assumed victory. Drawing cheers from the audience, she quickly got to her feet and took a bow despite being completely out of breath.

Bruce sat up rubbing the back of his neck. He felt a pang of sudden shock when he noticed that Diana was sitting amongst the kids, cheering along with them. Similarly to Tim before him, his face took on a bit of red in response to his humiliation in front of his wife. He had a feeling that he would never hear the end of this from either of the women for the remained of Helena's visit. After greeting and casually conversing with Diana for a few minutes, Helena walked over to where Bruce still sat massaging his wounded areas.

"Hey bucko, when you're done picking up the pieces of your shattered pride, we need to talk. In private," she said. Though Bruce could hear the fun she was poking at him in her words, he could also detect a grave seriousness on her voice. Acknowledging the request, Bruce got up and said hello to Diana before moving upstairs to get showered and changed.

* * *

Later than night, Bruce entered the spacious seating area near the fireplace where Helena sat. The fireplace obviously wasn't lit (it was still late summer), but it still sat as the central part of the room. Many quiet evenings were spent here when the two were young. Alfred would tell them stories of his time in the military or funny stories about serving the earlier generation of the Wayne family. They found the stories of their father comforting even if they did stir up emotion.

Helena turned to see him come in and spoke immediately.

"I see you're still able to walk. That's good at least." She didn't mean to bring him down on his head like she had, but did want to show off a little bit.

"It's over now. I guess that served me right for being rusty," Bruce said as he sat down, not meeting his sister's gaze.

"Yeah. Well, while throwing you around in front of your impressionable children is always a good time, I think we both know that I'm not here for fun. Tell me what's going on Bruce." Bruce looked up to see Helena's eyes staring at him intently. He gave her a questioning look to which she rolled her eyes. "Don't act naïve with me Bruce. I still keep contact with people in the company. I know Wayne Enterprises is in a tough spot right now. I want to know what's happening over there. I want to help."

"Now? After all of this time-" Bruce began.

"Look, you can't fault me for having to get out of this place. I know you're stubborn and refuse to 'give up' on anything because you're afraid it makes you look weak or whatever, but that's not me. I just couldn't bear to stay here any longer otherwise I'd be as invested in the family business as you are. But I'm here now and am willing to stay as long as I need to if it'll help move things along," Helena said in an intense tone. Bruce wasn't shaken by it and sat stoically with his hands folded under his chin.

"The fact of the matter is, this issue isn't going to be solved by one or two people, Helena. Decisions are going to have to be made that could leave great impact on people outside of just Wayne Enterprises. No one wants things to come to it, but we may have to pull out of this government project altogether. It'll be a heavy blow for sure, but nothing that we can't recover from," Bruce responded.

"Well," Helena continued, "I guess I can see how that makes sense, but I still feel obligated to see this through. Can I at least come in a _look_ at what's going on around the offices? If for no other reason, just to visit for memory's sake."

Bruce felt like relenting a little bit. He remembered that Helena always took great joy than even he had when their father took them to work with him. They got to ride the elevated train whose tracks ran right through the center of Wayne Enterprises' main headquarters building. Going from office to office, the two kids got to see lots of what went on in the company that they would one day inherit. Helena seemed more intrigued by it all than Bruce was. Ironically, the opposite situation actually ended up taking a position within the company when both were grown.

"Tomorrow morning, I'm meeting with three of the Queen brothers to discuss our options for resolving our disagreements. While I can't guarantee you a spot in the meeting itself, I can definitely fill you in on details at the moment of its conclusion," Bruce said flatly. Helena nodded in acknowledgement then looked toward the empty fireplace.

"Do you ever think about going out there and just… beating the tar out of every one of those Mafia scum?" she asked, breaking the short silence. Intrigued by the question, Bruce simply sat there and turned his forming response over in his mind multiple times. Seeing him in thought, Helena kept talking. "I know that the guy who killed mom and dad probably isn't seeing daylight much these days, but all of them in general… they… I can't think about this city or this house without feeling nauseated over the thought that they're all still out there literally getting away with murder."

"Yes, I have thought about it – mostly the reason why I learned so many forms of martial arts anyway. But I also consider that I have a business and a family to also protect. Thus, these skills will not be used for anything other than self-defense. I'm not really in a position to play vigilante at the moment."

Helena shifted her weight. "I guess I understand where you're coming from. But I'm just tired of these feelings and feel that I could maybe put these otherwise usual abilities to use to actually doing something to mitigate the problems that are making me feel this way every time I have to look at that disgusting city…"

Bruce stood up and began making his way out of the room. "Have a good night Helena. I'll be getting up early tomorrow. If you'd like to catch a ride in with me, I'm leaving the house at 7:30." She nodded and Bruce continued on up the stairs. Rewinding the conversation over and over in his head, he couldn't make sense of why Helena was **really** back in Gotham. He got the feeling that she didn't _really_ know herself. But the latter part of the conversation had him a tad worried about what would come of it – and Bruce wasn't even the worrying type.

* * *

**I'm sorry about this, but I have to cut this off here. I have to go to work in like an hour and a half and am not even out of bed yet (I need to work on my responsibility, I know).**

**The plan right now is to finish the part that was MEANT to be included in this chapter which is the meeting and aftermath of the meeting between – you guessed it – the Queens and Bruce after I get off of my shift. Best case scenario, I'll get it up later today. Worst case, early tomorrow. Either way, you can expect another update sometime this weekend.**

**I hope you guys are still enjoying and will tune in for the confrontation! And trust me, they'll get to the island sooner or later. That's where the real fun of this story will begin, but I don't want to spoil anything. **

**Happy reading!**


	4. The Confrontation

**(A/N): Yeah, I know I said I'd stop putting these at the beginning, but I do feel the need to apologize for not following through with my promise yesterday of getting this up before the end of the weekend like I planned. Literally my own laziness and a bit of writer's block prevented that from happening the way I originally planned, but hopefully it won't happen that way again.**

**Speaking of writer's block, you'd be surprised how much I struggled with time-zone information when writing this chapter. I'm not entirely sure if the math is 100% there, but Star City (the home of the Queens) is on PST time and Gotham City is on EST time in my imagining of the DCU – I like to think of Star City in California and Gotham in either New Jersey or Delaware. It's flip flopped between those two states throughout the comics but you can catch that history lesson on the wiki. Right now, it's story time! Enjoy!**

* * *

"I'll uh, call you later."

"…'kay."

This was the extent of Ollie and Dinah's exchange at the entrance of the airport terminal. At its conclusion, Ollie was left sputtering in a cloud of exhaust from his own convertible. He would have a lot of making up to do when he returned from Gotham – needless to say, Dinah was not happy about being woken up at 1 AM due to a surprise business trip that Ollie had failed to mention to her beforehand.

Letting out a long sigh, he picked up his briefcase from the asphalt and headed through the automatic doors that lead to United Airlines' section. As expected, his older brother Carter was standing in wait for him. He didn't look happy but, then again, he rarely did these days.

"Hey big bro, how'd Shayera like the chili?" he asked jovially as he neared his scowling brother.

"She didn't. She told me to throw it out," Carter said flatly as he eyed his brother's wrinkled shirt and pants. His frown deepened because of it.

"Gee. You didn't did you?" Ollie asked disappointedly.

"Not exactly… it was donated. To a good cause," Carter said slowly.

"Oh, soup kitchen?"

"Compost."

"Right."

Ollie and his brother stood silently for a few moments more. The sparse crowds weaved in and out of queues for the airline check-in terminals at Star City International Airport. Despite being early in the morning, travelers seemed to be out in force. The two men didn't make any further attempts at conversation. They didn't have the friendliest of relationships under normal circumstances anyway. However, they both silently agreed that they'd need to be civil if they were to survive this day.

"So… excited to see the other side of America?" Ollie asked finally to break the silence.

"There's nothing particularly 'exciting' about this meeting we're going into Ollie. Its outcome will determine much of how Queen Industries is going to operate moving forward," Carter replied. Ollie ignored the slight quiver he could hear in his brother's tone.

"Yeah, I heard Gotham's a bunghole too. But I thought that at least _you'd_ find some kind of thrill in seeing a new place," Ollie said looking into the almost empty expanse of the terminal. "I thought world traveling was kind of your shtick."

"Not when you've got a company to run. I treat this business with the respect and seriousness that our father did. Something I really wish the rest of you would start doing as well," Carter said impatiently as he looked down at his watch. They were already 15 minutes behind schedule.

"Late as usual. What else were you expecting out of the kid?" Ollie asked as he shrugged.

"He's 32 years old, Ollie. Don't refer to him as kid. It probably encourages him," Carter scolded. "He should have taken into account how long security will probably take us. It'll be a miracle if we make this plane. This wouldn't be an issue if we had agreed to invest in a private jet rather than that silly boat."

"Hey, hey, the boat is **not** silly. It's a real-life dream that floats and houses 16 people in style! What's not to love?" Ollie retorted.

"Having to use general airports," Carter said sourly. Ollie couldn't think of an argument against that one. He just put his briefcase on the ground and put his hands in his pockets as he stared at the ground. The Queens had a meeting a year earlier over what expensive vehicle the family would buy to share. Between the choices of getting a private jet and a sea-worthy luxury yacht, the yacht won the popular vote by a landslide. Carter and Dinah were the only two vouching for the jet. The other brothers and their wives had voted otherwise. Both of them were still bitter about it to this day.

After the passage of a few more minutes, the airport glass began to pulsate and shake and the sound of a booming stereo system grew louder and louder. Both Carter and Ollie followed an old, beat-up looking brown car with their eyes until it came to a stop just outside of the sliding doors. Classic rock music bubbled out of it in high volume like bubbles out of a newly poured glass of cola.

A young looking man with short, blonde hair got out of the passenger seat cradling a laptop bag. He was wearing a bulky backpack was well. Next to him in the driver seat sat a brown haired man with a cocky looking side smile. He rolled down the passenger window as the blonde man shut the door behind him.

"Remember, this is **two** you owe me now, Bar. I'm picking you up right here later on tonight, right?" he called out after the man who just left the passenger seat.

"Yeah Hal, just, go away now…" the blonde man called over his shoulder. The brown haired driver, Hal, craned his neck to see past Barry, the recent passenger, to get a better look at Carter and Ollie.

"Hey! Carter! O-zone! How's it hangin' fellas?" The automatic sliding doors of the airport shut behind Barry before the two had a chance to respond – not that either was particularly motivated to do so anyway. The blasting music could still be heard clearly, however.

"Heh. Good old Hal," Ollie chuckled. Hal gave a quick two-finger salute before revving his engine and peeling out of drop-off lane. Barry nervously shrugged the laptop bag's strap onto his right shoulder as he quickly looked between his two older brothers.

"I'm really sorry guys-"

"Save it, Barry. We've got just about 50 minutes to get through security, find our gate and get on the plane before it takes off without us. We don't need to waste time on sappy apologies right now," Carter interrupted. He grabbed his briefcase from where it rested beside him as Ollie did the same. Turning on his heels, he led the two down the escalator and towards the beginning of the security line. Now 1:40 AM, it seemed that the volume of people _increased_ as suggested by the length of the line. Carter slapped his palm over his face in exasperation as Barry cringed. The original plan to arrive an hour and half before take-off seemed very ideal at the moment. "Shouldn't have bothered with that silly boat," Carter grumbled as he joined the line.

"Hey! The boat isn't silly," Barry protested.

* * *

The air quality of Star City wasn't 100% pure quality, but it was a hundred steps up from Gotham City's smoggy atmosphere. That was what the three brothers noticed first after stepping off of the plane. There wasn't much time to waste climatizing to their new environment, however. They shuffled into the Wayne Enterprises provided limo and were whisked away to their business rival-turned-partner's headquarters at the heart of the city.

The trio began feeling the pressure weighing in after entering the immense lobby. Hundreds of employees milled about like bees in a hive – many of them with armfuls of files or tapping on tablets or smartphones. The majority of sounds that could be heard came from feet hitting the ground or shuffling of papers rather than talking. _This is what our office __**should**__ look like_, Carter thought to himself as he took in the sights. Beside him, Ollie was busy glaring everyone down – trying to figure out which of the uppity corporate types marching around him was Bruce Wayne. Barry was content staring at his shoes.

Reaching the front desk, the receptionist took their names and called up to the office of Bruce Wayne to announce the arrival of his 12:00 meeting. Suddenly, Carter spun around to face his youngest brother.

"Alright Barry, give me what you have," he said quickly.

"Wha-"

"Any files or records that you've brought along. I'll take them up to the meeting with Ollie. You should stay down here in the lobby and wait for us," he said, reaching out to accept the files. Both Ollie and Barry looked at him in bewilderment. Carter gestured with his head to hurry up as the receptionist received response to send them up in the elevator. Not feeling like arguing, Barry took the important binders from his backpack and handed them to his brother.

With that, Carter and Ollie briskly walked for the elevator to the left of the reception desk. Pressing the button to the top floor, they stood rigidly waiting for the doors to close. Once the car began its upward journey, Ollie turned to face Carter.

"What was that all about? Why did we bother bringing him if we were just going to tie him to a fence while we do the dirty work?" he asked in complete confusion.

"A change in strategy. I just suddenly got the feeling that storming into the man's office with three of us and one of him could seem a bit too… aggressive. We're trying to negotiate a deal, not intimidate him into submission," Carter answered in a steady tone of voice.

"Negotiate? I know _I _didn't come here to kiss the feet of 'the prince of Gotham'. We've gotta tell him like it is or else he'll continue to walk all over us!" Ollie replied passionately. "Maybe numbers would have served our point well. Plus, if I remember correctly, it was **you** that insisted that at least half of the Queen brothers should be present for the meeting. And you chose Barry and I because you figured you could manipulate us easier, huh?"

"That had nothing to do with it. You and I both know Arthur and Orm wouldn't have been conducive to our goals…"

"_Your_ goals maybe. But if it were me, I'd probably _want_ an arrogant meat-head and the classic next-door creep for backup. We've gotta show this guy that Queen Industries has a backbone, Carter," Ollie said adamantly. The doors opened at the top floor before the conversation could continue and the two men stepped out to meet Bruce Wayne's personal receptionist.

The woman wordlessly led them through a fancily furnished room whose opposite end had two, very tall wooden doors with a glossy finish. The Queen brothers had forgotten what the nervousness of the lobby felt like because the pressure they felt now was through the roof. Both had passing thoughts of whether the other or the receptionist could hear their hearts beating, but stuffed the silly thoughts as the woman opened the double doors.

Inside, an elderly African American man with thinning hair was sitting on the side of the desk pointing to some documents in the middle of it that the man himself, Bruce Wayne, was looking at simultaneously. The two paused their conversation and looked up to see who was coming through the door. The man on the desk smiled pleasantly at the young lady as she entered.

"Ah, hello again Rachel," he said pleasantly.

"Hello Mr. Fox. Mr. Wayne, your 12 o'clock guests are here," she said monotonously.

"Thank you Rachel, I'd like to discuss this further later on this afternoon Lucius," Bruce said to the man who had now gotten off the desk and was on his way out.

"Will do Bruce," he said with a small wave. He nodded to Carter and Ollie in acknowledgement as he slipped passed them towards the elevator. Rachel, the receptionist, politely asked if there was anything that she could do before turning on her heels and returning to her post across from the elevator.

"Please, sit down," Bruce said as he gestured to the three chairs positioned neatly in front of the desk. Ollie looked at Carter awkwardly when he realized that Bruce was expecting all three of them to come up. They both decided to just not say anything about it to avoid further embarrassment.

"Hello Mr. Wayne. I'm Carter Queen and this is my brother and business associate Oliver," Carter said a breakneck speed. Ollie subtly rolled his eyes at his brother's nervous habit of picking up his pace of speech when nervous.

"Yes, I know who you are. We spoke over the phone a number of times," Bruce said steadily.

"Of course. Well, we're here today primarily to see if we can reach some kind of agreement on how to handle this space station project under the government," Carter began, "we've heard your opinions on the matter, and are willing to offer-"

"Actually, we'd like to point out, Mr. Wayne, that Queen Industries has fulfilled every letter of our contract to a tee. And that we've already made a number of sacrifices to push this project forward. You should know all about the bureaucratic hockey-playing going on with the government's side of the equation, but as far as contributions to the effort, Queen Industries has done what was expected," Ollie butted in.

"What my brother is trying to say is that we're willing to do whatever we can to make this work out between us," Carter said as he desperately tried to reenter the conversation before Ollie turned the dip into a nosedive.

"Yes, Wayne Enterprises doesn't doubt that Queen Industries is committed to the goal. It's just that what we're being given to work with and the return that we're receiving just isn't cutting it anymore," Bruce explained. "We're essentially donating money at this point. Wayne Industries has a broad product line that covers a number of diverse markets, and few of them relate directly to this proposed space station. And from what I understand, it doesn't utilize a lot of what Queen Industries typically works with either, am I right?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ollie asked sounding a bit peeved.

_Cool down, Ollie_, Carter urged in the back of his mind. He kept his poker face on nonetheless.

"It means that this project doesn't even seem to directly benefit either of our business goals while the government expects us to work under a set of conditions that grows murkier by the month," Bruce said. "There seems to be little to gain from staying with this project now. And as a result, Wayne Enterprises is pulling out."

That was precisely what Carter and Ollie were hoping _not_ to hear.

"Mr. Wayne-" Carter pleaded.

"I understand that this prevents difficulty for you…" Bruce started.

"Difficulty? Try losing millions of dollars and rendering all of our efforts moot from the last seven months!" Ollie exclaimed.

"Wayne Enterprises faces the same consequences that you do. We understand your disappointment, but we cannot make this endeavor any more profitable. We're out."

Despite the finality that Bruce attempted to put in that statement, Ollie pressed the issue further and further with Carter half-heartedly running interference to keep his hot-headed brother from completely falling out of line. The conversation ended up revisiting every major point in the Wayne Enterprises/Queen Industries partnership timeline and challenges that took place along the way to support both sides of the conflict. There was even a point where Ollie seemed to have Bruce convinced, but the answer did not budge and the businessman held his ground.

Eventually, Ollie dropped it out of exhaustion. The battle was hard fought, but the stubborn man behind the desk would not be moved. Carter thanked him for his time and led his upset brother out of the office.

On their way out, they were passed by a tall, attractive woman with jet-black hair. Ollie scoffed after she had made it into Bruce's office and shut the door behind her.

"No wonder he wanted us to get out so badly. Isn't he married? I'm pretty sure I've seen pictures of his wife and that definitely isn't her. Some man Bruce Wayne turns out to be. What a-"

Carter glared hard at his brother. He couldn't believe that he was rude enough to say this kind of thing out loud while still in the man's office (and undoubtedly in earshot). Passing the receptionist once more, they entered the elevator and were on their way down.

* * *

Helena slipped in through the double doors as the two men that she assumed the be the esteemed Queen brothers that her own brother was so worked up the previous night over having to meet with them today. Just looking at his face now that the ordeal was over wasn't helpful in figuring out the outcome.

"So. How'd it go?" she inquired taking the chair in the middle that had remained unoccupied through the meeting.

"They didn't take it all that well. But I expected this much," Bruce said nonchalantly. He did look a lot more relaxed now that it was over. He did look very tired, however.

"Well. What comes next? I hear that we're going to lose quite a bit of money over this thing," Helena said eyeing Bruce's tidy desk organization.

"We are, but not as much as we probably would have if we had chosen to stay with this thing any longer. The government wants to build a space station to hold military supplies, personnel, and – most importantly – secrets. Neither of our corporations are the best choices for that sort of project. They'd be better off chasing S.T.A.R. labs or… maybe even LexCorp," Bruce said, his tone dripping poison on the last word. He was not fond of LexCorp at all.

"Well, you look like you need to get away. Like, _away_ away. When's the last time you've traveled somewhere that _wasn_'_t _some kind of city?" she asked staring at him directly now.

"Quite a bit of time," he admitted. The tonality suggested that he was done with small talk and was ready to attend to the rest of his day. Helena got up and left the office. She was just about finished with her visit to Wayne Enterprises for the day. The drama she had seen in just a few hours was enough discouragement from considering a permanent position at this company anywhere in the near future.

* * *

Barry knew the outcome of the meeting the second his brothers exited the elevator. He quickly shut his laptop and packed it before they reached him, jumping up as they neared.

"It's over," Carter said solemnly as he handed over the binders he had taken.

"I could tell…" Barry admitted. The three opted out of their complimentary tour of Wayne Enterprises headquarters and instead headed for the limo. Despite their plane not taking off for another two hours, they didn't see any reason to stall in the den of the enemy any longer than they had to. Plus, none of them were too keen on cutting their boarding time as close as they had this morning.

* * *

"This must blow a little bit harder for you, huh?" Ollie asked his younger brother who was staring out of the window next to him. They were comfortably seated in their first class accommodations and had been flying for about an hour. "I mean… the company starts failing, we pull you away from Center City,"

"It's called Central City," Barry corrected him.

"Right, right. I remember you saying that you met a nice girl down there and had something going for you. It's such a shame you had to put that off," Ollie said sympathetically. He was still reeling over his squabble with Dinah this morning. It felt like ages ago – he desperately hoped that she felt the same.

"Well, we kind of did, but it's like we can't stay away from each other. I was convinced that she hated me every before I had to move away because I was always late for everything… But I guess what they say about not knowing what you have until it's gone has rung true for the both of us. She wants to come to Star for a visit," Barry said. Ollie's eyebrows perked at the news.

"Tell her to go for it! She can come with us on the cruise if she wants!"

Barry turned to look at his brother in half curiosity, have confusion. Ollie shrugged and took a sip of the beverage he was recently brought.

"Yeah. I just decided this right now. I'm taking **the boat**," he spun his head the opposite way to see Carter slumped in his seat, fast asleep. Disappointed, he turned back and continued, "and anyone who wants to come with and getting out of reality for a bit. I _need_ to escape and there's no way I'm vegging in front of the TV with endless alcohol for two weeks. Kids are pretty impressionable unfortunately." He seemed amused by his own little statement but Barry wasn't laughing at all. He looked completely dumbfounded and confused. "Look, I'm gonna head down to the Florida and take the boat out for a spin around the Caribbean. You can come along too and invite your ex/not ex/possibly imaginary girlfriend to come along too._Capisce_?"

Barry shifted in his seat. "I guess, but when? I think she has to give notice to her job and she might be taking in her nephew for the rest of the summer since they're really close and he doesn't have the greatest time at home and they-"

"Sure. Invite them all. Invite her mom. Invite her mailman. We've got 16 spots to fill. That number obviously diminishes when you count my crew and possibly Arthur, Mera, and their kid. But I'm sure there'll be room for the two and whoever else," Ollie reasoned. Barry held back a smile and simply nodded and resumed his staring out of the window. Ollie let himself sink back into his seat. He knew that they were probably in no position to take time off and just vacation their troubles away. But he wasn't in the mood to bother with sense at the moment. He just needed to get this out of his system.

* * *

**Well, there we have 95% of the introductory character background developy stuff for this story. The last little piece will be written and uploaded tomorrow, but I'm just a tiny bit tired at the moment and don't want that to cloud my writing ability. Hopefully the latter part of this is at least readable… I was starting to feel it around then.**

**In any case, hang in there for one more update and then we can get to the fun part where all of the vacation-gone-wrong drama kicks up. I promise, this WILL turn into a superhero story eventually, but the foundation laying had to be done.**

**By the way, some last minute clarifications:**

- **No, Shayera and Carter do not have wings (yet). They are normal human beings at the moment.**

- **Diana does work for the government just as her alter ego does in the comics. Someone was wondering about Etta Candy, well you'll see her as well as two other special appearances in the mini-update tomorrow.**

- ** Hal isn't related to anyone in this story. He's just good friends with Barry and Ollie. He and Barry were college roommates in this universe.**

- **The world that this story exists in is mostly like our own at the point of attack. No aliens, alternate dimensions, or supernatural beings are known of yet. Note that I didn't say that they don't exist though (hint hint).**

- **'Rachel' is not necessarily Rachel Dawes from the Christopher Nolan Batman movies. It's more of a loose cameo/Easter egg reference. Just figured I'd preemptively answer that question before it turns up in reviews.**

**Speaking of those, thank you to everyone who has graciously told me what you think of this story. I'd like to encourage any feedback, good or bad, so that I can make sure that this experience is the best that it can be. I check PMs regularly so feel free to get me that way. If this is getting boring and you want to see me skip ahead to everyone beating the crap out of each other, tell me now! Seriously, any constructive criticism will only help me grow.**

**Aside from that, I'm pretty much done here. All that remains is a good night's sleep and I'll get crackin' on the last update before I strap down and begin writing out the main plot line. I apologize for the recent lack of BMWW. I'll be sure to fix that for you guys tomorrow :J**

**See ya!**


	5. House Guests

**(A/N): Hey.**

**Ok, so NOW I'll stop doing these pre-chapter notes since this is the last chapter before the main storyline takes off and there won't be much to explain moving forward. I literally just can't help myself when given the opportunity to blabber in my own voice before hopping into the narrator seat. Still very happy to see good response coming in for this story.**

**One little disclaimer: I should have done this at the beginning, but let me point out that I am not making a profit off of this story or seeking any kind of personal gain by using these characters. I don't own any of them and take no credit, nor do I intend to violate any copyright laws yadda yadda etc.**

**Enjoy! (Warning: this chapter is a little fluffy, but some people might like that. Ok, now enjoy!)**

* * *

By the time Bruce reached the middle of the grand staircase leading to Wayne Manor's front door, he could tell that he wouldn't be receiving the same silent greeting that he had the previous evening. The sound of music could be heard coming through the opened windows along the front of the mansion. Movement of shadows could be seen behind the closed curtains. Counting them, he could make out more adult sized ones than Diana, Helena, and Alfred. Curiosity piqued, he hastened his pace up the steps.

Stepping through the door, he nearly tripped over Ace who was standing right on the welcome mat. Not typically the jumpy type, he broke his typical procedure and nearly leaped into Bruce's arms in excitement. Wincing at the multiple blasts of doggy-breath, Bruce stroked the dog behind the ears a couple of times then set him back down on the ground. His suit now contained noticeable traces of dog hair that he began brushing at with an irritated look on his face.

"Bruuuuuce! How are youuuuu?" came a sing songy voice from the dining room doorway on Bruce's left. He turned to see Diana and her work friend Etta Candy approaching him – both wearing their office attire. The jolly greeting came from the latter whose chubby cheeks were stretched wide in a smile.

Diana remained silent until reaching an arm's length from her husband. Smiling warmly, she pulled him in for a quick hug and kiss.

"Welcome home," she said in between the embrace, "Helena told me the news."

"I'm just glad it's over. We can talk about later on tonight, but it looks like Wayne Enterprises will live to profit another day. Our other projects will move forward on schedule," he announced after pulling away from Diana.

"Hope you don't mind our intrudin' on your happy little home _Mr. Wayne_," Etta said cheerfully, "Diana, the interns and I took an early day and figured we'd finish up our work here 'fore the weekend gets underway an' all that!"

Bruce smiled accommodatingly. Etta's bubbly personality and sweet, slightly southern accent were only tolerable in short bursts for him. But since Diana enjoyed her company so much, he was willing to be hospitable for the little bit of time she spent in the house.

Two significantly younger women shyly approached behind Etta, each holding a number of folders and clipped bundles of paperwork that were worked on during the afternoon. Bruce reasoned that these were the interns. The two seemed like polar opposites. One was very thin with very pale skin, short hair that was bleach blonde, light blue eyes, and soft facial features while the other was more muscular with bronzed skin, waist long hair, sharp features and dark eyes. Bruce wasn't certain if he was imagining it, but her hair seemed a tinge green. He shook off the notion and figured that the stress of the day was getting to him.

"Oh, this is Tora and Beatriz. They're interning in my department at work," Diana explained as she noticed the two come in.

"Oh. Well it's a pleasure to meet you both," Bruce said pleasantly making eye contact with each one. They both seemed to quiver when meeting the billionaire's gaze.

"It's an honor to meet you Mr. Wayne," Beatriz piped up suddenly.

"Yeah, Diana talks about you all of the time," Tora added. Diana smiled at the comment and moved past Bruce to open the door for the guests.

"Well it was good meeting with you all this evening," she said inviting them out, "it looks like we're ahead of schedule for our work slate this month." The three women acknowledged her on their way out and made their way down to the limo driver that was waiting to take them to their respective homes.

Shutting the front door, Diana grabbed Bruce by the arm and led him back towards the kitchen where even more voices could be heard. "Come on," she said, "There's another surprise guest that's pretty eager to see you." Pushing through the thin doors, the couple entered the kitchen to see a number of familiar faces gathered along the countertop, engrossed in conversation. One of them, a handsome boy in his early twenties stepped forward.

"Hey dad," he said with a grin. Bruce's countenance lightened at the greeting.

"Dick, this is a surprise," he said as he scanned the rest of the members of the room.

"I figured it would be, but it's a few weeks until the new semester starts up, so Barbara and I figured we'd spend them here at home with you guys," he said gesturing to Diana and Alfred who was stirring the contents of a pot that was simmering on the stove further into the kitchen. At the mention of her name, a girl with bright red hair stepped up alongside Dick.

"Hello Mr. Wayne," she said politely.

"It's good to see you Barbara," Bruce reciprocated. The Waynes and Barbara's family – the Gordons – were well acquainted. It was her father, Jim, who responded to the scene first after the murder of Bruce and Helena's parents was reported. Merely a rookie at the time, it was his first case dealing with children. He visited them every weekend after that night to check up on how they were feeling and to report progress to Alfred on the status of the investigation surrounding the crime. Even after the kids had grown, they kept in contact with Jim. They attended his wedding and were the first outside of the Gordon family to meet baby Barbara when she was born. Naturally, the Gordon and the Wayne kids grew up together and attended the same K-12 private school during the year.

Without warning, Damian burst through a side door only to be scooped up from behind by a blonde teenager that appeared behind him.

"Damian, wait," the girl cried between fits of laughter as she tusselled with the boy that was furiously trying to escape her hold, "we picked out the color for you already, we just need you to sit still so we can paint!" Noticing the adults that were now staring at her inquisitively, she grinned wide and pinned the seven year old to her body. "Hi Mr. Wayne! Dick and Barbara brought me over," she announced.

"Haven't seen you since the school year ended, Stephanie," Bruce commented. He watched her swiftly rip her arms away from his son to avoid being bitten. Narrowly missing her fingers with his closing jaws, Damian resumed his sprinting as he continued along a wide path around where Barbara and Dick stood. He was stopped short by his aunt's outstretched leg that moved up to block his path.

"I wouldn't run in the kitchen while Alfred is cooking, kiddo. He'll nail you for it if you're not careful," Helena said with a knowing side smile to Alfred who nodded in response.

"You shouldn't be running at all, Damian," Diana scolded. Tim and younger Helena appeared alongside Stephanie who could hardly contain her giggling. Damian bared his teeth at the three who were planning on pinning him down to paint his fingernails. From the look in the young boy's eyes, he would have moved to decapitate them all if his parents weren't watching.

The night carried on from there – filled with catch-up stories from Dick, Barbara, and Helena, mixed in with the occasional cameo from the younger kids whose makeup/nail polish wars continued until Barbara pulled the plug and dragged Stephanie home.

Finally finding time to be alone after everyone retired to their rooms, Bruce recounted the results of the meeting with the Queens to Diana. She listened patiently as he went through every detail of what led to the crisis, and what it menat for the company moving forward.

"I just wish we could have parted on friendlier terms. Oliver in particular was not happy with the outcome of this. And I don't blame him – I can tell he has a certain passion for his work. Something, admittedly, I don't quite have for this business on most days," Bruce said staring at the ceiling from under the bed covers.

"Don't sell yourself short, Bruce. You do pretty well for yourself," Diana assured him. She laid on her side with her left arm propping up her head as she looked into her husband's distant gaze.

"It's just that this job… and this city… takes so much out of me. I hate this place just as much as the rest of you, but it _is_ home. And the company seems to be a large part of what keeps it afloat financially. It feels like the weight all of Gotham rests on the shoulders of Wayne Enterprises," Bruce continued, "it would be unbelievably easy to go insane from that realization alone if I let it."

"Well 'insane' is what got us together in the first place. They say doing the same thing more than once and expecting a different result is the definition for the word. You visited me at the market _six times_ before I finally gave up and talked to you to get you to go away," Diana chuckled. "If Bruce Wayne weren't insane, he wouldn't have gone through all of that trouble to converse with a poor, Greek farm girl between business meetings. Who knows what our lives would have looked like if that hadn't taken place?"

The two laid in silence for a bit. After some time, Bruce figured that Diana had fallen asleep, but was surprised when she spoke up again in a yawn.

"Have you put-*yawn* any more*shorter yawn* thought into the getaway?" she asked, covering her mouth as it widened each time.

"Getaway?"

"You mentioned it the last time we were away. You clearly want it now. Why not take it? Before the kids head back to school and work picks up for the both of us?"

"I haven't really thought much, no. But I know wherever it is, it will be somewhere private. No cities, no resorts," Bruce said with finality.

"Fine by me," Diana said softly as she drifted off. Bruce continued staring at the ceiling with a blank expression. He was weighing an idea in his head – one that made almost no sense to pursue, yet was the most enticing option for the solitude he craved.

* * *

**And there we have it. Sorry for the kind of cryptic and maybe weak(ish) ending there, but I've kind of changed plans a bit. Just a fair warning: there will be a tiny bit of a time skip in the next chapter, not unlike the jump from chapters 1 to 2. It was kind of implied, but a few days bridged those two chapters and a day or two between 2 and 3. Four picks up essentially right at the end of 3.**

**Also, I am aware that "Ace the Bat-hound" is typically portrayed as an aggressive guard dog type, but I took the liberty of writing him a ****_bit_**** OOC here. It may seem kind of silly to think of an animal character like that in that way, but I see this Ace as a younger version of what is usually seen – not really a puppy anymore, but not a full blown adult dog. Don't know how attached people are to the typical Bathound, but he won't be quite the way he's shown in cartoons in this story.**

**Anyways, the plot marches on! Exposition is pretty much all out of the way now, and we can get to the fun stuff. So I appreciate all of the positive support, but we're just getting started. If you've soldiered through this far, your patience is about to be paid in full. Have a good rest of the week, and hopefully I'll have the next update for you by the weekend! Until next time!**


	6. Horizon

Whistling merrily, Ollie gave the keys on his finger a spin before inserting them into the lock in front of him. Twisting to the right until he heard a subtle click, he pushed his full weight into the door and tripped into the tiny navigation room of the Queen family's yacht. It was cluttered with remnants of the boat's previous usage – the little getaway Ollie, Barry, and Arthur had during Christmas the previous year. Empty snack bags were scattered across the control console and the floor and empty soda and beer cans could be spotted in odd places around the space.

Brushing some debris aside, Ollie took a seat at the console. He called dibs on the first navigating shift for this trip and he intended to savor his time behind the wheel (more accurately, behind the ship controls). His state of ecstasy was abruptly halted by a series of sharp knocks on the door. He swiveled in the chair to meet the gaze of Dinah who was leaning against the door with arms tightly crossed.

"Do you have a minute, or are you preoccupied playing pirate captain?" she asked in an acerbic tone.

"I have a thousand minutes for you, prettybird," he said gleefully.

"Fantastic, so maybe you can take a few of those to explain to me **where** we're actually **going**," she said intensifying her glare for emphasis.

"Hey, hey, easy there. This trip is supposed to be _relaxing_ and give us a chance to settle down and rekindle our sanity a bit. It's just a light trip around the Caribbean for a few days. We'll cruise, we'll island hop, but the fact of the matter is – there's no knowing where we'll be going… exactly," Ollie explained, trying to be facetious to quell his wife's irritation. One look at her face told him that she still wasn't having it.

"That was marginally cute, but still doesn't answer my question. Are you really just going to sail into the ocean until we land somewhere?"

"Pretty much."

Dinah slapped her palm over her face. After a long groan, she quickly shook her head and spoke up again, "Well, can you at **least** tell me when you're planning on pulling out of here? The dirty-pier-smell is making me feel a little green."

"As soon as everybody else gets here. Barry was supposed to fly in a couple of hours after we did since he flew down to Central City to pick up his girlfriend and her nephew or something like that. They were going to visit him in Star, but after I talked him into joining in on our high sea adventure, he talked her into it. And the kid's just happy for a free vacation apparently," Ollie said. He whipped out his phone and checked his text message inbox at the tail end of his rambling. Arthur hadn't gotten back to him yet. "Aaand Arthur was supposed to text me back when he left the timeshare, but he and Mera came down here the day before yesterday with their son and one of his buddies. Dunno what Orm's doing. Probably sulking at home like usual."

"Oh, I can't see why he would want to do that! You guys are always _so_ nice to him and treat him _so well_. He's probably just being inexplicably ungrateful for all of your _humanitarianism_," Dinah said throwing her hands in air sarcastically.

"He just acts so dang creepy all of the time. Plus he's no fun at anything fun. We'd put him out of the house every time we wanted to have a party. The guy doesn't know how to loosen up," Ollie complained. Dinah rolled his eyes so he decided to stop on that point. "Speaking of sticks in the mud, Carter and Shayera are supposed to be coming. They're preparing to take their younger son to his first year of college, but apparently he and Shayera wore Carter until he agreed to delay their plans and come vacation with us."

"Vacation isn't a verb, but alright," Dinah said looking incredibly disinterested at this point. "If they contact you, tell them to hurry themselves up. I'm starting to miss dry land already." With that, she turned and headed out to the open air portion of the deck. Ollie turned his attention back to the sea that expanded before him into the horizon.

Nearly swooning from the anticipation of sailing out there again, he was completely caught off guard by a piercing, irritated sounding teenage voice.

"OLIVER! There're people outside trying to get your attention," it yelled from a deck below from what Ollie could tell.

Cringing at the thought of how loud it must have been to be heard that clearly from where he sat, he replied, "Coming!"

* * *

Walking out onto the outdoor deck on the main level, Ollie spied his younger brother Barry alongside his two guests. The one standing closest to him, he presumed, was the reporter that he talked about so often.

"What's going on little bro," Ollie greeting him cheerfully, "and this has to be-"

"Iris West. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Barry told me everything about you," she said pleasantly.

"Oh ho ho- I desperately hope not," Ollie said with a chuckle. Turning his attention to the slouching teenager that was staring at the boat with awestruck wonder, he couldn't help but grin. Iris frowned and nudged the boy with her elbow when she noticed his gawking.

"Hey, what? Oh," he said as he seemingly noticed Ollie standing there for the first time. "I'm Wally, her nephew. Thanks for the invite and all that… I've never been on a boat before or seen one this close in real life," he said still looking up and down the length of the yacht in wonder.

"Hehe, well kid, you're in for one heck of an experience. This thing runs on the stuff hopes and dreams are made out of. You won't be disappointed," Ollie assured him with a chuckle. Realizing that he hadn't extended the bridge to the dock so that the three could actually get on the boat, he sheepishly bent down and did so. "Connor! Artemis! Get yer' keisters down here to help our guests carry their stuff to their rooms. I hope you're not eating all of our food yet – we have to make this stuff last at least five days," he called back towards the cabin. Connor appeared within seconds and greeted the trio warmly. Artemis lollygagged a bit, but made it down in time to pick up the last suitcase. She barely noticed the boy with the spiky, red mop of hair who had definitely noticed her. He lingered in the entryway a bit as he waited for her to catch up.

"Hey there!" he started as he shifted his grip on the pile of luggage he was hauling, "I didn't know anyone my age was going to be on this trip. I guess you're my aunt's boyfriend's brother's daughter or something?" The blonde girl's scowl panicked him into taking another stab at the guessing game, "Niece? Fairy goddaughter?"

"I'm pretty sure the 'fairy' portion of that archetype only applys to god_parents_. But nice try, skippy. You just about had it," she said brushing past him and continuing up the staircase after Iris and Barry. Wally's head sunk as he followed in pursuit. _Great job Wall-man_, he thought to himself, _a swing-and-a-miss on your one shot at the one girl remotely in your age range on this trip_.

Making it to the room Ollie pointed out for Wally to stay in, Artemis swung the bag back and tossed it inside. Wally's eyes widened in horror at the sight.

"What are you doing? There could be something fragile in there!" he cried.

"Oops. Didn't know you packed your self-esteem in your carry-on," Artemis said sarcastically, brushing past him again.

"Geez, hopefully the quality of this ship isn't reflected by the level of service," he muttered halfway under his breath. He ducked inside of his room and shut the door behind him.

* * *

From there, the rest of the occupants arrived in waves. Carter, Shayera, and their two children Hank and Don arrived next. Carter made it a point to reiterate that he only came along for the sake of his wife and son (as well as an off-the-cuff comment about the jet), which Ollie duly ignored. Hank seemed to share his father's sentiment and was not shy about voicing it – to which Ollie also turned a deaf ear.

Arthur and his family, despite traveling the shortest distance to reach the docks, arrived last. He and his wife Mera's son, Garth, brought along a close friend from their neighborhood. Ollie spent the duration of his greeting to the new arrivals trying to figure out what culture this kid's name could have come from… He gave up by the time the group began moving the luggage to their quarters. _Kaldur'ahm_, Ollie mused, _strange name for sure_.

Moments later, the blonde billionaire had reassumed his position at the control panel of the ship. It was much more evident that the ship was populated now – the buzz of conversation could be heard on lower decks as well as the occasional wanderer strolling out onto the uppermost outdoor deck which set just below the navigation room.

With one last sigh and glance into the sunset, Ollie picked up the PA microphone and flipped the switch on.

"Geeeeeeooooooooood evening ladies and gents. Captain Ollie speaking. We're looking at a marvelous night for sailing here folks, just a couple more minutes and we'll be ready to go. Before we raise the anchor and take to the waves, I'd like to thank everyone who made this little trip possible." He paused as he tried to remember where he was going with this. "Um… all of you, so… thanks for that. As well as welcome everyone one who's joining us for the first time on the S.S. Sherwood. I think we all needed this little vacation for different reasons and varying levels of desperation... Anyhow, welcome aboard. It'll be a good time. First stop – wherever we make landfall!" He proceeded to overzealously slam the mic into place and start the engine. He picked up a walkie talkie off of the console and radioed in to the first mate he recruited earlier in the morning.

"Roger roger, we are go for launch. Let's pick up the slack, over," he said. A few moments went by and then a response crackled back through the receiver.

"Roger that Cap'n. The barbell has been curled, over," Connor's voice buzzed. Ollie smiled. His son seemed to have inherited all of his quirkiness.

"Copy," Ollie announced as he propelled the boat forward to move out the dock. Pretending that the bow of the ship was the tip of an arrow, Ollie directed it at the half-set sun that peeked from the horizon's line. Suddenly feeling a surge of inspiration, he picked up the mic once more, "Oh and Carter, luxury yacht for the win!" A grin returned to his lips once more when he heard his name echo in an infuriated tone through the corridors of the ship.

* * *

**And they're off!**

**Similarly to the Queen family's take off from shore, this story is now sailing into the main plot line for those of you who have been holding out for that. I have to admit, things have developed slower than I originally foresaw, but hopefully you guys don't mind. I wanted to make sure the major characters at least got the chance to make themselves known before their craziness hits the fan.**

**Just a heads up, another update might not come for a little while. No specifics on how long the wait will be yet, just know that. I appreciate the continued support and am very happy to see the steadily growing numbers of faves and follows. It makes me feel all of the happy warm fuzzy feelings that everybody likes. Thank you to everyone who's contributed to that!**

**Lastly, I figured I should point out the new faces that literally sprung into the story without warning here: Hank and Don are the sibling heroes Hawk and Dove. They were featured a couple of times in JLU (I know there are quite a few fans of that series here). Kaldur'ahm and Artemis's presence in this story are a direct result of my Young Justice withdrawal. I was skeptical about their replacement of Garth and Cissie at the start of the show, but the portrayals of them won me over as the show carried on – I figured I'd unite all four here.**

**In any case, adios! I'll see you next time.**


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